Indian Springs falls in state championship after No. 1 Guntersville’s late scoring flurry
Published 4:56 pm Friday, May 9, 2025
Indian Springs gave it their all but fell short to the top-ranked Guntersville Wildcats and the state’s all-time leading goal scorer in AJ Shumate, but the coaches and players took pride in their effort on Friday and the season as a whole. (Reporter Photos/Alec Etheredge)
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By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor
HUNTSVILLE – The No. 1 vs. No. 2 clash of Indian Springs School and the Guntersville Wildcats lived up to the billing throughout as two heavyweights fought for every inch of the pitch through a scoreless first 69 minutes.
Eventually though, the dam broke for the most prolific goal scorer in Alabama history.
A rocket of a goal in the 70th minute from AJ Shumate put Guntersville up 1-0 before he followed up with a second just a minute later to secure the 2-0 win for the Wildcats on Friday, May 9 at John Hunt Park in Huntsville for the Class 5A boys soccer state championship.
While Springs were disappointed in the moment with the result, coach Rik Tozzi was proud of the effort and the journey to make it back to Huntsville for the first time since 2022.
“My guys gave it everything they could,” Tozzi said. “No one predicted us to be here at the start of the season, so credit to them, but I think probably on the day, the proper team won.”
The Wildcats got off to a fast and furious start with three chances in the first 10 minutes. They missed a shot across the goal on the break in the third minute before teeing off from the left side of the box a minute later.
Guntersville fired again from the right side on the ninth minute, but Indian Springs made a kick save to force a high follow-up shot.
Springs finally got a shot off in the 12th minute, but Alex Hage’s deep effort went wide right of the target. Indian Springs struggled to generate shots on target over the majority of the half as the Wildcats defended well before they hit the attacking third.
After a quiet stretch for both teams, Guntersville got a right side run in the 24th minute that forced a clearance from Springs, and the Wildcats narrowly missed the follow-up effort.
Hage got another pair of chances after that on a 25th minute break where he had to cover for a fallen teammate by shooting a short shot as well as a 27th-minute right-side run that resulted in a shot into the side netting.
Guntersville had the best chance on the half in the 30th minute from a deep shot on the left side that rocketed off the right post. The Wildcats earned two more threatening chances before the end of the half, forcing a clearance on a ball in the box in the 34th minute before firing a shot over the goal off a 38th-minute corner kick.
Both teams went into the half tied at 0-0, but Indian Springs started to turn the tide early in the half. A pair of set-piece chances preceded a massive breakaway run by Hage in the 45th minute, but the Wildcats dove for a save that went out for a corner.
Springs continued to be the better side through the first 15 minutes of the half, pressing the attack with the wind at their back in hopes of breaking through the defense for the opening goal.
They capped off the sequence with one of their best chances of the game, a 60th-minute cross that was misplayed by the keeper and led to a narrow miss by the Indian Springs offense.
The tide then shifted back in Guntersville’s favor as Springs had to clear multiple threatening chances over the next 10 minutes. Captain Erik Ledvina had to clear a ball to the right wing in the 64th minute before his teammates threw multiple blocks a minute later.
Keeper Forrest Crawford was then called into action to save a low endline cross in the 66th minute.
While the flurry of offense briefly stopped near the 70th minute, that’s when the Wildcats struck.
After working the right side of the pitch, Shumate teed off from about 20 yards out and fired home the long-range shot, putting Guntersville up 1-0 and sending the mass of red-clad traveling fans into an elation.
Indian Springs still had a window to respond down just one goal with 10 minutes left, but the Wildcats quickly slammed it shut. Mere seconds later, a breakdown by Springs led to an initial shot that Crawford and the defense dispatched, but the ball went out to Shumate for a follow-up.
Shumate converted once again off the assist from Hudson Holdsambeck to put Guntersville up 2-0 less than two minutes after the teams were locked in a scoreless draw.
Indian Springs didn’t go down without a fight though. A 72nd-minute cross off a free kick narrowly missed multiple attackers on the far post, and a tight-angle shot in the 78th minute was saved for a corner.
Springs got one last chance in the 80th minute after a rocket of a shot hit a Wildcats player’s hand, drawing a yellow card for a handball. Hage set up atop the box for a free kick and rifled a direct shot to the crossbar, forcing Guntersville keeper Slaide Mohr to push the ball over the net for a corner.
With 10 seconds left and ticking, Indian Springs quickly crossed the ball into the box for Joaquim Crawford-Mendoza, who settled the initial ball before sending a shot across the net and into the far side of the net as time expired. However, the official ruled off the goal and gave the Wildcats the 2-0 win.
Guntersville held a 6-4 shots on goal advantage while the overall shot tally was much wider, 23-7 in favor of the champions. Hage was the lone Springs player with multiple shots thanks to his four shots, with two on target, while Shumate fired off eight shots for the Wildcats. Both Crawford and Mohr finished with four saves apiece in the net.
After the game, Tozzi complimented Guntersville for their quality deep in the midfield, up top at forward with Shumate and in the net with Mohr. He also said the Wildcats’ advantage as a true 5A-size school with eight experience seniors allowed them to have fresher legs at the end of the game.
He also said a lot of Guntersville’s tactics, skill level and coaching made their defensive backline difficult to break through as his team was forced to work off the counterattack like it did against Faith Academy in the semifinals.
“First of all, I couldn’t send players forward, because they are too much for us, so we had to hold back and sit in to try to defend,” Tozzi said. “And it worked for 70 to 80 minutes, right? Second thing is they had a lot of pace at the back, and third is, they’re very well coached, plus they’ve got a good goalkeeper. That always makes it difficult to score.”
At the end of the day though, Tozzi is proud of his team for beating the preseason expectations and making it to Huntsville. Springs finished the year 19-5-3, including a 7-1 mark in area play that secured an area title.
Indian Springs then avenged that lone area loss to Montevallo before rolling past Elmore County and Faith Academy to make the title game. Three of those five losses were to 6A and 7A teams in Calera, Northridge and undefeated Oak Mountain.
Tozzi hopes his players will soon come to realize just how much they have done this season and take pride in it.
“I couldn’t be prouder,” Tozzi said. “I told my guys that. It stings right now, but over the next two or three hours and over the night, they’ll start realize what they accomplished and how proud they should be.”
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